FSB breaks up armed plot against government?

[MeMyselfAndI]

Russian secret police, FSB, arrested a group of men, mostly former military officers, in the city of Ekaterinburg, in the Ural region. Large stockpiles of weapons, ammunition, explosives, and literature of 'extremist' nature was found in their homes (in Russia, 'extremist' can mean anything, by the way. If it criticizes the government, it is 'extremist'). The men were all members of 'Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky People's Miltia' and 'Popular Front for the Liberation of Russia', and personal friends and supporter of Colonel Vladimir Kvachkov
http://s48.radikal.ru/i119/0901/6e/28c955efe229.jpg
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Kvachkov)who heads both illegal militias and who is currently imprisoned on charges of plotting to assasinate Anatoly Chubais (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anatoly_Chubais), a charge on which he has now been tried four times, and found not guilty each time, by a jury.

FSB says the ex-officers were to start a rebellion in Ekaterinburg, on August 2nd, on Airborne Troops Day, along with brigades of their youth followers, take over the city, and spread their 'revolution' from there... Supposedly they were going to, first, target the local military base, where they hoped the soldiers would join their side.

http://kp.ru/online/news/938968/
http://www.newsland.ru/News/Detail/id/752440/cat/42

I don't know. Most here are finding this hard to believe. It smacks of both Putin's paranoia and FSB's need to prove they are still here, still needed, and still taking care of important business. A PR campaign for them, of sorts.

[Michael]

I don't know. Most here are finding this hard to believe. It smacks of both Putin's paranoia and FSB's need to prove they are still here, still needed, and still taking care of important business. A PR campaign for them, of sorts.

First of all, everything and nothing is too hard to believe in Russia! :lol:

That being said, the chief problem with a 'security-state apparatus' is that if it doesn't have an external enemy to focus upon, it tends to turn upon its host. These types of institutions need an enemy to justify their existence. They will manufacture one if necessary. Nothing new, unusual or surprising about that. :shrug:

[MeMyselfAndI]

First of all, everything and nothing is too hard to believe in Russia! :lol:

That being said, the chief problem with a 'security-state apparatus' is that if it doesn't have an external enemy to focus upon, it tends to turn upon its host. These types of institutions need an enemy to justify their existence. They will manufacture one if necessary. Nothing new, unusual or surprising about that. :shrug:

That's true. You know, the government is only raising funding for security and military forces now. And will keep on doing so.

What we hear is, they are expecting trouble, unrest, after the Presidential Election of 2012. They are preparing for... anything, really. Including a large-scale Libya-style revolt. Not that I think that's actually possible here.